Tardis Toys
by scifigeekgirl
Summary: AU story. Rose Tyler can't believe her luck when the Director of Marketing for Tardis Toys wants to hire her for their product testing department. Life at Tardis Toys is never dull, especially when Rose meets one of their mad toy developers, the Doctor.
1. Chapter 1

a/n: I decided to post another of my trope fics here. This one is AU Gen combined with mistletoe kiss. Nothing but fluff with a smidge of angst. Very sweet romance story. Part 1 of 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who

The last thing Rose Tyler ever expected was to be Program Director in the product testing department at Tardis Toys. It was all a fluke really. She had been assigned to the toy department at Henriks and was dreading it. No one wanted to work there due to the noise, mess and chaos caused by children and their overwrought parents who walked through that area with a glazed look in their eyes while their children squealed, whined and ran off to bounce around the toy aisles. There was always an incident of some sort, like a tantrum of being denied a desired toy, tears, begging and not to mention the occasional lost child while a parent's attention was diverted by their mobile. It was the duty of the sales person on call to cater to said overwrought parent, find the missing child, clean up the mess of toys thrown asunder and locate that elusive toy that some clueless adult needed but had no idea what it was, only that they must procure it and quickly or devastation and the apocalypse would rain down upon them and their sweet little angel child would contort into something out of Dante's inferno.

All the Henrik's employees avoided this area. When Rose was assigned this duty, she groaned. Her supervisor, Yvonne Hartman, lectured her on duty and dedication and how she would never get anywhere in the world without paying her dues and learning how to cope with any obstacle thrown in her path, including tiny sticky fingered, crying ones. Rose had sighed and made her way slowly up to the toy department. She received several sympathetic looks from other sales associates, one of whom wished her luck before scurrying away in case Yvonne Hartman tried to corral her into helping Rose.

When Rose arrived, it was chaos. Obviously, the prior sales associate had fled leaving Rose to straighten up and organize everything. It took her an hour just to get things back on shelves and would take her at least another hour to make any sense of it. At least, it would have if there were no customers to assist. It was the week before Easter and the shelves were stocked with the latest Easter toys like plush bunnies and chicks as well as paint sets, coloring books, arts and crafts and the latest electronic gadgets. It wasn't long before Rose plastered a smile on her face and began helping customers. She was run ragged all day and barely had a break for lunch. The bright side was she did receive a commission for sales and sales in this department were booming.

As the day drew to a close, she was counting down the minutes. She was tired of hearing _Peter Cottontail_ every time a child activated a particularly horrid plushy, she had sugar goo from a lollipop sticking to her favorite blue cardigan and had nearly was bruised from having to climb up to the top of one shelf to retrieve on particular puzzle for a demanding parent who insisted all the other boxes had marks on them and she had to have an untouched box.

It wasn't all terrible, though. She had met one rather shy boy by the name of Owen whose mother ordered him to stay put while she dragged his whinging sister away to try on clothes. This was against store policy but the ginger haired mother looked so hurried and put out; and the boy was so quiet and well behaved, Rose let it go. As she watched Owen quietly examine the science section, she couldn't help but smile. He was staring at one particular toy with longing. It was a Super Science Magnet kit. It reminded Rose when she was little and used to stand outside a local toy store and stare through the plate glass windows at the latest toy which she knew her mum could never afford.

It was a lull in customers and there was only one other shopper in the area so she quickly walked over and plucked the kit off the shelf and opened it for him with a quick, "don't tell anyone." He looked at her as if she was some comic book super hero who just saved the Earth from destruction. He proceeded to babble a mile a minute to her about how magnetics were a force of attraction or repulsion and how a magnet is an object that has a strong magnetic field attracting materials like iron; that magnets have two poles and two magnets will be attracted by their opposite poles.

Rose reluctantly left her little scientist when another customer came by asking for assistance. Owen seemed to be happy and sat off in a corner in his own geeky world. Soon, they would be closing and just as she was about to page his mum, another customer hurried up. It was a man in a business suit walking with a blonde haired girl in a school uniform. He ordered the girl to pick out something and be quick and then he focused on his mobile. If it wasn't bad enough that he waited until she was closing up, this git of a father now ignored his daughter. Rose was seething but once again, pasted a smile on her face and went to work asking the man if they were looking for something in particular.

He looked at her annoyed and waved her toward the little girl who was biting her lip and tugging at her skirt while staring at the aisles of toys.

It took a while, but Rose soon coaxed out of the little girl what she wanted. As it turned out, the girl had a stutter and was nervous talking to strangers. Rose was able to get her to speak to her and together they picked out a toy. When they walked up to the father, the little girl was smiling and talking hesitatingly to Rose. The father seemed a bit stunned looking from his watch to the girl to Rose. Rose escorted them to the register and before they left, he turned to Rose. "Thank you. We just lost my wife and my daughter…she hasn't taken it well. She doesn't normally talk much." He paused and looked down at his smiling daughter clinging to his side and then back at Rose. He looked at Rose's name tag. "Thank you, Rose, for taking the time to make my daughter feel special."

All her aggravation from annoying, screaming children, cleaning up messes and dealing with haughty condescending parents melted away. Rose watched him leave and the little girl turned and smiled, waving goodbye. Working in the toy department was tough but that might have just made her day. She was startled from her musings when someone cleared her throat off to her side. It was the ginger-haired woman whose son had been her quiet companion.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I was just about to page you," Rose exclaimed, looking down at the little boy.

"No, I should be apologizing to you. My daughter here, Lily, has been a right pain today…"

"Was not!" the little ginger haired Lily announced with a pout.

"Zip it you!" the woman ordered. She then turned back to Rose with an apologetic smile. "Anyway, you really helped me out today with Owen. I really appreciate it."

It wasn't often a parent was so nice, much less apologized for leaving their child with her. "Oh, Owen was no problem at all," Rose said and looked down at him standing close to his mum. She looked back up at his mother. "He's real bright but I guess you know that."

Donna Noble knew talent when she saw it. It was part of her job as Vice President of Tardis Toys. This sales associate had it, although from the looks of her, she didn't know it yet. Donna excelled at recruiting only the best for her company and she was about to snatch up another diamond in the rough.

"Yeah, genius sort of runs in the family," she acknowledged and looked down at the boy. Who smiled and then walked up and hugged Rose.

"Thank you for being nice to me today, Rose," he said softly and walked back to his mum and grabbed her hand.

"So, Rose, I hope you don't mind me saying this but you have a real way with kids. What are you doing here?"

Rose was shocked. That was the last thing she expected to hear. "Um, I just got transferred to the toy department. Normally, I work in women's apparel downstairs and I'm really not that good with kids. I mean, Owen's so well mannered and smart. He was a breeze!"

"I saw you with that little girl earlier. Not everyone can make that kind of connection with kids. It really is special. I also saw you earlier working with some of the products, especially the Slitheen Slime lab, Timey Wimey Trivia and Key to Time Puzzle. Most parents have a time of it figuring that stuff out but you just dived in and got it. I have to say, I think you can do better than some generic shop like this."

Donna handed Rose one of her cards. "We could use someone like you at Tardis Toys."

Rose looked at the card and recognized the name right away. Tardis Toys was top of the line and Henriks carried several of their products. Rose had sold at least a half a dozen of their line today. She looked back up at Donna. "But, I don't know what I could do. I mean, I don't even have my A Levels."

Donna smiled at her. "Stop selling yourself short. You've got talent Rose. I'm Donna Noble by the way."

"Tyler, Rose Tyler." Rose responded.

Donna held a hand out and shook Rose's hand. "Nice to meet you, Rose Tyler. I'll be expecting a call in the morning." Some of the lights dimmed in the store and Donna looked up. "Well, I don't want to keep you. Thanks again for Owen and I'll talk to you tomorrow." With that Donna swept out of the toy department, with children in tow leaving a stunned Rose Tyler.

She looked at the card again. "Donna Noble, Vice President and Director of Marketing." Rose grinned. Tardis Toys. Couldn't be worse than here and it didn't hurt to talk to them. With that, she tucked the card away and went to work shutting down the toy department, leaving work with a hop in her step and looking forward to tomorrow and whatever adventure lay ahead at Tardis toys.

Everything happened fast once Rose met with Donna at Tardis Toys headquarters. She was given a tour and fell in love with the atmosphere. It was busy but relaxed. Everyone smiled and seemed to love working there. Rose didn't feel out of place or intimidated except perhaps for the Research and Development Department. It was filled with what Donna called _the brainy types_. They developed the next generation of toys, some of which went way over Rose's head. She never did quite get what one of the toy inventors or scientists, as they were called here, was trying to explain when he showed her the latest toy in development, physics monopoly.

The product testing area was not a disaster but it needed improvement. Rose was nervous that she couldn't do it and after her mother's lecture about not getting airs and graces and remember her roots, she was even more nervous. She was just a shop girl from the estate after all.

Donna was looking expectantly at Rose, waiting for an answer and before Rose could say anything, a tall skinny bloke in a suit burst into the room, his arms full of electronic bits and wires and something that looked like a robotic dog.

Donna sighed. "Rose this little strip of nothing is the Doctor, our resident space man and all around bonkers inventor."

The Doctor turned to Rose. "Hello! Would you like to see my newest invention, Alonzo?" he asked and set his robotic dog toy down on a table.

Rose looked at the brown pin suited mad man. He was handsome in a geeky sort of way, with a friendly face, big brown eyes and the most gorgeously tousled brown hair Rose had ever seen. She looked at Donna who rolled her eyes and then looked back at the Doctor.

"Doctor, this is Rose, who I hope will be taking over product testing. Don't scare her off!" Donna said, almost chastising him.

He just grinned and excitedly went to work on Alonzo the tin dog as if it was an every day event to waltz in work on a robotic toy dog in front of a visitor..

Rose stood quietly and watched him wondering about this whole job idea. She listened to him babble on about circuits, processors and artificial intelligence and was barely able to follow him he talked so fast. That being said, there was such an enthusiasm about this Doctor that she was immediately drawn to along with his excitement about the product he was pointing at. She might not understand how it worked but she had enough of the gist of it and could almost see the excited look in the face of a child like Donna's Owen. She may not know a whole lot about kids but she could certainly bridge the gap between this science geek, his new inventions and showing it off to kids. It would even be fun. What could be better than coming to work and showing off toys to kids?

The Doctor was demonstrating his mechanical dog by activating a penlight remote control when the dog shot across the table at an alarming speed. Rose shot forward and caught it just as it was about to crash to the floor. She looked at the toy tin dog and smiled as it wiggled its antenna like ears at her. She looked up at Donna with a huge grin on her face.

"I'll take it!" She exclaimed!"

The Doctor stared a moment at her and tugged at his ear. "Well, it's really not ready. I mean, it might need a little bit of work and when I say a bit, I mean…"

Donna rolled her eyes. "She means the job, dumbo." Donna then looked at Rose standing there cradling the Doctor's new toy and smiled. "You can start tomorrow. Let's get you to HR and get things started.

Rose walked up to the Doctor to hand him his toy dog. "He's lovely. Um, thanks for showin' him to me. I'm sure kids would really have fun with this…" She paused and looked at the K-9 emblazoned on the side. "K-9 toy."

He just stared at her a moment before breaking out in a huge grin. "Brilliant," he breathed. "I mean, K-9 was just the current model but it has a certain ring to it," he said, gazing into her eyes as if looking for something and then pleased at what he found. He would be keeping an eye on this Rose Tyler. She had a fresh enthusiasm he was drawn to, not to mention she had the most dazzling welcoming smile he had ever seen.

"Shouldn't you be off fixing him so he doesn't speed off and kill some kid?" Donna, asked crossing her arms in front of her, interrupting his thoughts.

"What? Oh yes! Fixing things! I'm good at that. Especially tin dogs and advanced sentient toys," he said as he stumbled out of the room looking at Rose and grinning like a loon.

Rose couldn't help but giggle. He was just so adorable and enthusiastic. This job was not going to be boring.

Rose wasn't wrong about the exciting part. She had turned in her resignation at Henriks the next day and went straight to Tardis Toys. It was challenging to put together the product testing department but she had fun making their product testing room child friendly. It didn't take long before she met everyone. Well, everyone except the mysterious CEO of the company who nobody met. Apparently, the CEO liked to stay out of the limelight and remained anonymous although there was always wild speculation about who he or she was. It added another layer of excitement to working there.

Rose's position wasn't just confined to the product testing department though. She took part in meetings to learn about the products and marketing as well. She soon realized Tardis Toys was filled with a bunch of friendly nutters. R&D was at the top of her nutter list. Although the marketing people weren't far behind. They had debates on everything from pears versus bananas; the importance of the little shop in hospitals and how their toys helped sick children heal; whether or not bees were aliens and the importance of rubber ducks.

Of course, like any large organization, there was also company gossip. Rose was in the elevator one day with a group from an accounting when she ended up in the middle of just such a conversation.

"So, you're the new girl taking over product testing?" a young Scottish ginger-haired girl asked..

"Yeah, that's me. I'm Rose, Rose Tyler."

"Amy Pond, and these are my friends, Astrid, Elton and Lynda," she said indicating, a bubbly blonde-haired girl, a thin blonde man in a t-shirt and a vivacious girl in pony tails dressed in a jeans and a red and white cardigan set who looked like she was fresh out of university.

"So, have you met our resident mad scientist then?" Elton asked as Lynda slapped him on the shoulder. "What? You know it's true. Just last week he set fire to his lab for the fourth time."

Amy grinned. "Maybe that's because he was otherwise indisposed," she teased.

"Sorry, who's this you're talkin' 'bout? I'm still putting names and faces together," Rose said, curious about the office gossip.

"They're talking about the Doctor. He's this gorgeous bloke in R&D who wears these fitted suits and has this great hair that just makes you want to…" Astrid said with a glazed look in her eyes

"Astrid!" Lynda exclaimed giggling. Alton just rolled his eyes.

Amy sighed. "What they're trying to say is he's a nutter but a gorgeous nutter. You'd know him if you met him."

Rose blushed. She had, in fact met him, several times.

dwdwdwdwdwdwdwdw

They were, of course, talking about the Doctor. She had been charmed by him during their first encounter with the tin dog but then she'd run into him, literally, a couple of days later when she became lost in the building. He'd been focused on some weird metal ball thing with antennas and flashing lights that he'd been holding in his hand. Rose she had been looking at a building directory on the wall when he bumped into her.

"Oh Rose, hello!" he said with a huge grin on his face.

"Hello," Rose responded, blushing a bit as she took him in. He was wearing another well fitting brown pinstripe suit and with his hair all tousled, she couldn't help but think he looked a bit foxy.

"I don't suppose you've seen any Ood running about have you?" he asked and put on a pair of glasses that just about left Rose speechless.

She stared at him, having a geek love moment before shaking herself out of it. "Sorry, what's an Ood?"

He lit up at her question. "Oh! They are my newest project! Interactive marbles! They move around and change colors based on the mood of the children."

Rose giggled. "Mood marbles! So they what, change colors and play with the kids then?"

"Well, sort of," he agreed tugging at his ear. "But they, um, went a little funny and shot out the door."

"So, you need a hand findin' 'em then?" Rose asked and he beamed at her. An hour later, after the two of them had run around joking and giggling like a couple of naughty children, the Ood hunt was completed. The Doctor declared Rose an Ood whisperer as all of the little marbles had turned pink and yellow and congregated at her feet as she cooed to them. Rose had been delighted and enjoyed her mini adventure with the Doctor. Of course, his flirting may have helped.

Her next memorable encounter was when she had a meeting with one of the toy inventors in R&D, Malcolm Taylor. The Doctor had popped in to Malcolm's office much to Malcolm's discomfort.

"Rose Tyler, Top Toy Tester! There you are!" he shouted out in joy, standing in the doorway to Malcolm's office, hands shoved in his pockets and rocking back on his trainer clad feet. Malcolm had jumped and looked warily at the Doctor.

Rose had just grinned. "Hi, Doctor! What's up today. You lose the ood again?"

Malcolm gaped at Rose. "Lo…oose the ood?" he stuttered and looked at the ground suspiciously shuffling away from Rose. Rose tried not to laugh.

"Oh no, no, no! This is better than the Ood!" he said enthusiastically and walked over and grabbed her hand, dragging her out of Malcolm's office.

Rose looked over at Malcolm still staring at the floor, his glasses slightly askew. "Malcolm, I'll be back in a mo!"

The Doctor's lab was chaotic. There were bits and bobs of about everything stacked on every available service, some things hanging from the ceiling or stuck to walls. It was like a junk yard and a toy factory had exploded in the room depositing bits of metal, wires, springs, board games, game pieces, video game controllers, dolls and stuffed toys everywhere. The Doctor led her through the maze of stuff toward a work table with several lights pointed at it.

On the table was a clear cube the size of a coffee cup. When she looked up at him, he was staring at her. "So what am I lookini' at?" she asked.

"Touch it," he said and tried to hold back a smile she knew was itching to spout off information about whatever it was.

Not one to back off, Rose pressed two fingers to the cube and it reacted. It pulsed a rainbow of colors and they swirled in the box.

"Talk to it," he asked her, now clearly excited.

Rose shrugged and leaned down to the cube "Hello, I'm Rose," she said.

It then played a happy song and created a perfect pink rose in the box which then morphed into words and a voice sang out, "Hello Rose! What sort of games do you like to play?"

Rose grinned and looked over at the Doctor who was bobbing up and down excitedly. "Go on, tell it!" he whispered.

She thought about it and decided to test this new invention. "Um, I like to play football."

"Football is fun! It was first played in medieval times, brought to our country by the Norman Conquest." It then began discussing the rules and more history on the game as well as suggestions on how math could be used to improve one's skills.

Rose looked at him beaming. "So it's a teaching things then?" she asked.

"Oh no! It's so much more! This is just the first step! I'm creating virtual environments and this will be the communication port. It will teach children how to integrate science in all aspects of their life. Think of it! We could have game facilities all over that not only let children play and improve their coordination but learn at the same time!"

Rose smiled at his enthusiasm even if she wasn't convinced kids would go for the science part. He stood next to her and tapped the cube, hovering over it like a proud father. "You are such a geek!" she teased and bumped her shoulder into his.

"You say that like it's a bad thing!" he replied, giving her a somewhat hot look.

She blushed. "Didn't say it was a bad thing. Some girls like the whole smart geek thing."

"Some girls?" he asked, clearly digging for a compliment.

Before things went further they had been interrupted by one of the research assistants.

dwdwdwdwdwdwdwdw

She was shaken from her musings by Amy. "Oh you have met him!" she exclaimed and looked slyly at Lynda who was giggling. Poor Alton just looked bored.

The Elevator dinged open and Alton escaped, followed by Lynda. Amy paused in the doorway. "Word of advice, be careful with that one. He's pretty to look at but he's not so innocent. He has a reputation for running through girlfriends. He's a real serial flirt who isn't interested in anything serious and runs at the first inkling of settling down or commitment. Just be careful."

That was enough to make Rose wary. She didn't need to make another relationship mistake. She'd already done that once before with disastrous results. Then, there was her best mate Mickey. She loved him but wasn't in love with him and in the end, she had hurt him. They were still friends but it wasn't the same. The Doctor was gorgeous but she had to be vigilant and keep her heart safe. Of course, that didn't mean she couldn't flirt back.

The months at Tardis Toys flew by and Rose had more good days than bad in product testing. On the bad days, she had screaming children flinging toys across the room and parents who looked put out and glared at her. On better days, she had fun talking with children who asked questions and really seemed to get some of the toys that she herself didn't entirely understand. Donna insisted Rose share her findings at marketing meetings to put a more human spin on things instead of simply sending them statistics or cold reports. She also often attended a few meetings in R&D to, as Donna put it, "Reign in the eggheads to think more like a kid and less like a mad scientist."

Rose genuinely enjoyed those meetings. Some of the toy designers seemed genuinely perplexed by the children's comments and others found inspiration. The Doctor always seemed to waltz in and out as he pleased but always sat down next to her and whispered commentary in her ear about each of the toy designers and their quirks. Many times she'd shove his shoulder and tease him about being rude and mad. The two of them just clicked. It wasn't unusual for the Doctor to pull her out of the meetings and go on some mad adventure testing one of his projects. Rose felt herself growing more and more comfortable with him and he seemed mad for her as well. Although she kept Amy's warnings in mind, she couldn't help but wonder if he wanted more. If he asked her out, she wasn't sure she could say no to him.

It wasn't until she was sitting in a meeting and a beautiful brunette waltzed in and up to the Doctor pulling him into a snog that the tiny bit of hope she had that they might have something between them was snipped. Lady Christina De Souza was refined, intelligent and beautiful. When she swept into the room, all male eyes in the room turned to her. With a husky whisper and an intimate caress, she swept the Doctor away without a backward glance. The previous intimacy between them, the whispering and giggling to each other was gone. Rose felt a few pitying glances directed at her and decided to counteract it with as much cheer as she could muster, even if her heart was breaking.


	2. Chapter 2

a/n: I decided to post another of my trope fics here. This one is AU Gen combined with mistletoe kiss. Nothing but fluff with a smidge of angst. Very sweet romance story. Part 2 of 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who

She didn't see the Doctor at any more meetings and wasn't invited back to his lab. In fact, she barely saw him at all other than passing him a few times in the hallway. When she did see him, he looked like he wanted to say something to her but couldn't get the words out which was odd for him. If there was one thing the Doctor was good at, it was talking. Rose did her best to smile and then dashed off away to focus on her work.

It drove her a little mad at how much time she thought about him, wondering if she had done something wrong. It needed to stop. She was better than some whimpering lovesick girl. She'd never let a man get to her this way before which made her even more determined to put this behind her. Rose loved this job and wasn't going to let some mild flirtation ruin it.

Life went on and Rose went on a few dates but she was bored to tears. That's when she realized she wanted more than just dating and dancing. She wanted someone to talk to her about important things, hopes and dreams, not just football or what's on the telly or who Tricia Delaney is shagging this week. She wanted someone like… Donna walked into her office interrupting this thought.

"Rose, can I have a moment?" Donna asked, standing in the doorway.

"Yeah, sure. Come in."

Donna settled down in a chair and stared at Rose. "You know, you've been here six months now."

"I know, I can't believe it. It went so fast," Rose replied.

"Rose, if anything was bothering you, you know you can talk to me," Donna said, tapping her manicured nails on the cushioned arm of the chair.

Rose swallowed hard and wondered what she'd done. She had tried so hard to fit in here and not mess up this opportunity. "Did I do something wrong? I mean if I did, just tell me and I'll fix it…make it right."

Donna sat up straight. "Don't be daft! Of course you didn't do anything wrong. It's just in a place like this, gossip runs wild and I know that a certain space man may have…" She paused. "May have done what he always does, runs off with his gob, takes you on adventures and then wanders off without another word." She sighed. "Look, he doesn't mean to hurt you, he just gets distracted. He's that brilliant creative type and he has a history of getting swept away."

Rose stared at her and then looked down at her desk, drawing concentric circles on her writing pad. She knew she had to talk to Donna rationally. Her job was on the line. "Donna, I don't know what you've heard but the Doctor and me, we're just friends is all."

Donna rolled her eyes. "Oh don't be stupid. You think we don't see? It's obvious to even Malcolm how nuts the two of you are for one another. That is, until that Christina decided to pop back in to drag him off on one of her fiascos.

"He's entitled to date whoever he wants," Rose defended. "I can too and have," she said in a soft voice.

"Yeah and you're miserable," Donna pointed out.

"Maybe datin' life hasn't been the best but it's not effectin' my job," Rose said, a little perturbed at this line of questioning.

Donna smiled. "Now that's the spunk that's been missing and you're right. You are one of our best employees. The point is I care and I hate that, that little strip of nothing has you in knots! I like you and you're a hard worker. So, just tell me you're not gonna let him ruin this for you."

Rose smiled at Donna. "Naw, I'll be all right. It's made me think ya know? Maybe…maybe I want to go back and get my A levels. On my own time, of course!" Rose quickly informed her.

Donna perked up. "Good for you! Our company has a program to help out with the cost. Visit HR and they'll tell you all about it. Now that we have that settled, let's talk about the marketing campaign for the Dalek doll."

While Donna spoke to Rose, the Doctor was in his lab staring at his Ood marbles and thinking about Rose. He missed her. It had been stupid to let Christina convince him to go run head long into trouble. Her kind of trouble often involved stealing something for an adrenalin rush or purposely causing a scene at some society function. He had run off on a lark, and perhaps to get some distance from Rose.

Things had happened so fast with her. He'd never felt so drawn or in tune with anyone before. It was like an instant connection only much deeper than he had with anyone else. He had found himself thinking about her often, about how nice she smelled or what she would think of his latest project or if her lips were as soft as… He stopped. His thoughts then ran to how a girl like her, young, brilliant and fresh, couldn't possibly have romantic feelings for someone like him, would she? He paced and pulled out his sonic yo yo which whirred up and down as he concluded he really was an idiot. Just because she didn't aggressively pursue him like Christina or push the boundaries of friendship didn't mean she wasn't amenable to something like snogging him in the supply closet. He smacked himself in the head. He'd mucked this up good. Now he had to fix it.

dwdwdwdwdwdwdw

More weeks passed and Rose had begun classes to continue her education. Everyone at the company was supportive. The holidays were approaching quickly and this was a big time at Tardis Toys. The marketing department was in the office nonstop and even Rose had pitched in a few nights. Donna's mobile was practically glued to her ear and it seemed to Rose she was always on the cusp of threatening someone. Despite the stress, the holiday spirit was alive and well. No one celebrated the holidays like Tardis Toys. It seemed like all the main holidays occurring at this time of year was represented, Hanukkah, Kwanza and Christmas.

Along with all the rushing about and decorating, Rose had her own personal mystery. Every day, a mysterious item would appear on her desk. It might be flowers, a plant, crystalline rocks, a bag of chips, a movie, a scarf or sometimes something bizarre like a blue plushy banana that had a happy little face on it. Rose was never able to figure out who was doing this but she was determined to find out.

Rose subtly questioned her co-workers but never figured out the identity of her gift giver. The company's holiday party was coming up and she was determined to use that as an opportunity to interrogate her co-workers a bit further, especially after they'd had a few drinks and loosened up a bit. Although, she couldn't deny that a part of her had a suspicion she hoped might be true. Perhaps a certain madman in R&D was paying her office secret visits. She had heard in the cafeteria that the Doctor had broken things off with Lady Christina months ago and had been seen working on a secret project. Still, he seemed to be making great efforts to avoid her. But why would he avoid her? She had asked Donna about it and she had shrugged and just said, "He's the Doctor. Who knows why he does anything." Of course, Donna also seemed a little too interested in Rose's schedule and practically commanded Rose to show up at the Company holiday party.

The holiday party was a posh affair. Tardis Toys mysterious CEO made sure it was the event of the year and all the employees had a good time, although he never showed up himself. Everyone dressed up for a night of dancing, drinking, good food and fun. Rose, who normally wore jeans or khakis, casual tops and jackets to work, decided to really dress up for the party. Her Mum styled her hair in an up do and she picked out a new dress with the very generous bonus Donna made sure she received. It was a halter top silver cocktail dress that hugged her curves but wasn't too tight. She paired it with a white faux fur coat and sparkly sequined sandals. The jewelry she wore was dangling crystal earrings and a silver bracelet adorned with charms of stars, moons and space ships that her admirer had left for her.

When she walked into the ballroom at the hotel where the party was being held, her jaw dropped. It was simply amazing with crystal chandeliers, sparkling light across the room. Brightly decorated Christmas trees dotted the hall and white, silver and gold dressed tables were spread on one side filled with poshly dressed employees. A band was playing at the other end of the room and waiters were circulating with food and drinks. She checked her coat and joined the crowd, whispering hello to everyone as she took it all in. She'd never been anywhere like this before and she didn't want to miss anything so she could tell her mum all about it.

Donna waved her over to a table where she sat with her husband, Lee. She insisted Rose sit with them and some of the other department heads. At first, she was a little uncomfortable sitting with the executives but they were all so friendly that she relaxed and enjoyed herself. It wasn't long before she was sipping champagne and nibbling on elegant appetizers. Donna was dressed in a sparkly green sheath dress and was the life of the party. Soon, Donna was dragging her husband on the dance floor. Rose was sitting quietly taking it all in when a hand was laid on her bare shoulder. She looked up to see the Doctor.

"Doctor?" she asked, unsure how she should react. He'd been a right git avoiding her but, if he was her secret admirer…

"Rose, you look beautiful. I mean for you know the Christmas party and all," he said and shifted nervously. He was dressed in a tux and black converses and looked adorable.

Rose knew that it was time to set some things straight. "Yeah, well, I'm surprised you noticed since you've barely been lookin' at me lately, much less talkin' to me." She gave him a pointed look. "So where's Christina?"

He winced. "About that, can we talk? In private, I mean?" he said, his hand tugging at his hair.

Rose stared at him for a long time before standing up. "Yeah, maybe we should. I might have a few things I want to say too," she answered.

He looked scared but grabbed her hand and pulled her through a door into straight into a lift. "Doctor, where are we goin?"

He looked at her hand which he still held, lifting it up to examine the bracelet on her wrist. He looked her in the eyes then and smiled. "It fits. The bracelet I mean."

Rose wasn't sure how to react. She looked down at the bracelet. "Yeah, have this secret admirer. Pity he's afraid to come talk to me."

"Maybe he's afraid. Maybe you scare him," the Doctor responded.

"I don't think I'm that scary. I'm just a shop girl off the estate who lucked into a good job is all."

"You have never been just a shop girl, Rose Tyler and you didn't luck into a job. Tardis Toys is the lucky one."

"But I haven't done much of anything," Rose said softly.

"Oh yes you have. You've reminded us what we do all this for; that this company is about more than statistics and sales."

Rose blushed and looked at where his hand still held hers. The lift pinged and the doors opened. The Doctor quietly led her out and to some double doors. He punched in a code and walked her into what she could only assume was the penthouse suite. She hesitated at the door.

"Oh," he said when he realized what this must look like. "No, no, no! I mean, I just wanted to talk to you in private." She still paused. "Please," he said looking at her with puppy dog eyes begging her to give him a chance. Rose bit her lip as she searched his face and finally came to the conclusion he really just wanted to talk and nodded her head.

He led her through the suite, which was again decorated for the Christmas holiday with a tree, and bows and candles sparkling all over the room. He continued walking with her until they exited onto the balcony and an impressive view of the London skyline. She shivered and he gallantly put his coat around her shoulders.

"I don't understand any of this. Why are you doing this? Why didn't you just talk to me and why here in this suite which must cost a month of my salary," she said, looking all around the balcony which was lit up with white Christmas lights.

"Because I needed to talk to you alone and some place special," he answered, leaning against the balcony railing.

"Why?" Rose asked simply.

He sighed and scrubbed at his face. "I'm not good at this. I mean I can talk about robotics, electronics, maths, physics and tell you the name of every star up overhead," he said looking up at the night sky. Then he looked down at her. "But you, talking to you about how you make me feel, it…it's beyond words."

"You, without words? Mark that one on the calendar," she teased and then saw that he was serious. Her smile fell. "Maybe I can help. Why don't you start with Christina. I mean I thought you me was…well close and then you just disappeared with her and when you came back, it was all different. You hurt me, Doctor."

"I know!" he exclaimed and shot forward to grasp her hand. "You just came from no where and exploded into my life like a super nova. You were this bright star, ready to take anything on, even me and you never asked for anything in return."

Rose smiled and squeezed his hands, encouraging him to continue. He inhaled. "And it scared me, terrified really. I felt so much so fast for you. I've spent so much of my life always running, running toward adventure, discovery and learning everything I can and then running away from responsibility, obligation and anything that tied me down. But, you Rose Tyler, I didn't want to run from you and that was a bit frightening."

"And Christina?" Rose asked, intent on pushing him for answers.

"Christina is like a long list of others before her. First, there was Joan at university. She demanded commitment in short order and wouldn't put up with my need to live an unstructured life. So, I ran away to Paris and met Reinette. She was the opposite of Joan but she wanted an open relationship and to be spoiled. I didn't want that either. I ran into River at an archeological dig. She was fun for a while. We each had our own lives and met up for adventure occasionally but she was keeping her own secrets and just showed up unannounced expecting me to drop everything for her. I met Christina over a year ago. She was all about adventure but was too aristocratic and getting into her version of trouble was wearing on me. Then I met you, Rose. You, who have so much spirit and outshine everyone in the room. You're brave and smart and utterly fantastic. When I'm not with you, I want to be. I realized that after I'd mucked everything up between us and for that I am sorry."

Rose was gobsmacked. He was effectively declaring his love for her, under a starlit sky on the balcony of a posh penthouse suite. She needed to keep her head though, needed to be sure.

"And the gifts? You've been leaving them on my desk, yeah?"

He grinned. "Oh yes!"

"Why? I don't get it? Why didn't you just leave me a note or something?"

He scoffed. "Notes are boring! Besides, I didn't want anyone to know and I was…" He tugged at his ear. "nervous you wouldn't talk to me again. I thought I'd sort of break the ice."

Rose grinned. "With a blue plushy banana?"

He smiled broadly at her. "That's my favorite! Everyone loves a happy banana and what's wrong with blue?"

He may not be perfect and perhaps he had a history of running and being a bit of a flirt but he was her flirt and a romantic one. "All right. I suppose I can't be mad at any bloke that gives me a blue plushy banana! So, anything else you want to confess before we um…" she said, blushing.

"Well, there is one other teensy tiny little thing," he said nervously.

Rose raised her eyebrows. "You're not married are you? 'Cos that's a deal breaker."

"What! Oh no, no, no!" he said emphatically. Not at all, not even a little!"

"All right then what?" Rose asked.

"Um, it's a secret. I mean a big honking secret and you can't tell anyone."

Rose nodded. "Okay, I promise I won't tell anyone."

He walked up close to her. "I sort of own Tardis Toys."

Rose stared at him blankly. "Sorry, did you say you own Tardis Toys?"

"Wellll, most of it," he said, nodding his head. "My sister, Donna, owns a good portion too and then the employees own some and a few others. You own some too you know. It's part of your employee benefits."

"Oh my gawd! You're the super secret CEO!" she exclaimed.

He winced and then grinned madly at her. "Oh that's Molto Bene! Super secret CEO! See, I told yo're brilliant! Donna will love that!"

It started to snow and they both looked up and giggled. "We should go inside before we both freeze," she said and curled up to his side. As they walked in she stopped him. "Why tell me if it's such a big secret? I mean, why me?" she asked, still unable to comprehend that a super intelligent sexy man like him, would love her.

"Because, I don't want to keep any secrets from you. Because, I don't want to run anywhere but to you," he said and caressed her face, his thumb tracing her cheekbone.

He leaned over and whispered into her ear, "Look up."

When she did, she saw that they were standing beneath the mistletoe. She looked up into his eyes, reflecting joy laced with a tiny bit of uncertainty. She smiled. "I love you too," she said softly. He whispered her name and pulled her a passionate snog. Both of them plastered themselves against each other, moaning and tasting each other in way they had both dreamed.

"It's about bloody time!" a voice called out and they parted and looked over at Donna and Lee standing there watching with champagne and wine glasses. Rose looked up at him smiling. They may not be perfect, but life for them would never be boring.


End file.
